Elisha Karmitz has filled the position of General Manager for mk2 Group since 2014.
Elisha Karmitz joined mk2 in 2006, as Director of Publications and Editing for the free newspaper TROISCOULEURS. A trail-blazing and involved film-loving media, TROISCOULEURS is dedicated to creative and innovative films and artists.
In 2008, Elisha Karmitz took the head of mk2 Multimedia and developed the communications and diversification operations for mk2 Group. In 2012, mk2 Multimedia became mk2 Agency, an agency specialised in audiovisual communications, content creation and events. This new structure puts mk2’s expertise at the service of brands, and connects them with cinema, culture and fashion talents. Elisha Karmitz has produced the following with mk2 Agency among others: Catherine Deneuve Rive Gauche, directed by Loïc Prigent, and Unpredictable Creativity, directed by Kim Chapiron for Nike.
In 2016, Elisha Karmitz created mk2 VR, the first permanent venue dedicated to virtual reality in Europe. With the development of the mk2 VR Pods – VR solutions for professionals, along with the management and distribution of a content catalogue, mk2 became a key player in immersive technologies. In 2019, in order to adapt to these new challenges, mk2 Agency became MK2+, a consultancy agency and creative studio for emotional experiences and campaigns. Among the agency’s achievements: PSG Expérience, a fun and immersive visit of the Parc des Princes and OCEANS, a virtual odyssey through an interactive aquarium.
Elisha Karmitz is also co-producer of the documentary Piratage, by Etienne Rouillon and Sylvain Bergère (2011), and of films such as : Jia Zhang-Ke’s Beyond the Mountains (2015) (in competition at the Cannes Film Festival and awarded the Screenplay Prize at the Asian Film Awards), Xavier Dolan’s It’s Only the End of the World (2016) (awarded the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival and the César for Best Director in 2017), Jia Zhang-Ke’s Ash is purest white (2017) (in competition at the Cannes Film Festival), Pawel Pawlikowski’s Cold War (2018) (awarded the Director’s Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and as Best Film at the European Film Awards), Xavier Dolan’s Matthias & Maxime (2019) (in competition at the Cannes Film Festival), by Joachim Trier’sThe Worst Person in the World (2021) (Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival in 2021, Lumière for Best International Co-Production in 2022, Goya Award for Best European Film in 2023), Simple comme Sylvain by Monia Chokri (2023) (Grand Prix du Jury and Prix de la Jeunesse at the Cabourg Film Festival), and Room 999 by Lubna Playoust (2023).
In 2020, Elisha Karmitz launched mk2 Institut, a space for expression, dialogue and exchanges which gives a voice to artists, authors and researchers, including Erri de Luca, Esther Duflo and François Surreau. They each encourage debate to discuss the world of today and tomorrow.
Created at the beginning of the 2010 decade by Elisha and Nathanaël Karmitz, the Paradiso brand aims to offer new life experiences around cinema. In 2011, Elisha Karmitz launched the largest 3D projection in the world, with the projection of the animated film Rio under the nave of the Grand Palais in Paris, a performance which entered the Guinness Book of World Records.
Paradiso became the creative laboratory for many new cinema uses and reinvested the before and after screening with the Cinéma Paradiso events in 2013 and 2015, held under the nave of the Grand Palais, and in 2019 and every year since 2021 in the Square courtyard of the Louvre museum. Following on from this, Elisha and Nathanaël Karmitz opened the Hotel Paradiso in 2021, the first cinema-hotel with a unique concept in the world. The Hotel Paradiso is shaking up the codes of the hotel and cinema industries while reflecting the mk2 values: selection, sharing, discovery and accessibility.
Photo copyright: Gilles Bassignac/Divergence for JDD (2015)